Recently my book, Green Interior Design was released. Like most people who have never written a book, I thought the days of sitting in front of my computer coming up with hundreds of pages of clever material was the hard part. Visions of Hollywood scenes featuring authors and their publishers led me to believe that I would be traveling around the country on a glamorous book tour (television, radio, chic book stores, exclusive parties) staying at posh hotels, selling millions of copies and having my editor pick up the tab.
I mean isn’t that what JK Rowling gets to do? Ha ha. The joke was on me. After you write your first book, you the author, get the pleasure of marketing it too. Ok fine, how hard can it be? I contacted a PR person known for her prowess in marketing books. She quoted me $20,000- but no Internet marketing . I did the math. I make about $1 a book , multiply that by a million copies, equals… this sounded like a great plan. Only when I asked how many copies she thought I could sell, she said about 15,000. I confirmed the number with some other design authors. My next thought was, I’m going to need to look at some other options.
Then it hit me- THE BLOGGERS. One of the greatest things about blogs is that unlike magazines that have 3-12 month lead times, blogs can post content immediately. Plus the bloggers put a link (straight to a shopping cart) in the article. I immediatly started contacting the blogs I know and love.
In no special order here’s the list of the blogs who saved me $20,000 in marketing and helped me publicize my book. Thank you thank you thank you! Give em’ a read and be sure to tell them if you have something compelling to announce, they’re happy to help you spread the word.
7. Being Tazim
9. Live Modern
11. Examiner.com
12. Design Shuffle
13. Design Addict
14. Book Page
15. Ink + Wit
18. Charm Home
20. Yossawat
21. LA Mag
22. Lush Pad
23. An Inspired Walk
25. The Jinks Family
27. Simple & Wonderful
28. Moore Minutes
20. Go Design Go
31. Cliff Spencer
If I missed anyone, please let me know! MWAH to the bloggers.
Wishing you the best of luck with your book sales. Good for you for thinking outside the box. Since you and your readers are into Interior Design, I’d like to invite everyone to check out Heritage Window Coverings. I offer window coverings throughout CA, AZ, and NV. You can visit my web site at http://www.heritagewindowcoverings.com. Any feedback would be appreciated as well. Thanks!